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Story:Nobody's Safety Guaranteed/Intermission 1
These are the things that Deng has taught You. This is your room. You have everything that You need here. There is a bed. You should love this bed. It’s been with You for almost your entire life. There are white walls and a white floor for a clear mind. You like the colour white: it is the colour of your skin and the clothes that You wear; it is the colour of Deng’s coat. Her hair has streaks of white in it as well. Secretly, You wish that You could touch her hair sometimes, the way white breaks through black and grey. Deng brings You food. She is kind to You: when You demand white food, she gives it to You. She smiles gently when there is a change in the food (You hate change – a fault, You know, but one that is hard to change) and soothes You through your tantrums. Deng teaches You everything You know, so it is important that You listen to everything she says. This can be hard: Deng always speaks softly, gently, and the world is much too complicated for you to understand. Deng tells You that You are special. She reads to You. She shows – and even demonstrates – You her work, sometimes – complicated machines of dull grey with too many parts, little glass chambers with sharp bits, devices for listening to insides. It is very complicated, and You will never tell her, but You find it incredibly boring. It makes You sad, sometimes, that Deng spends so much time away because of her work. But You try not to be selfish. After all, Deng also plays with You, teaching you games that are both fun and lessons. Your favourite one is when she asks You to lie down on your stomach, as still and quiet as possible, your eyes unfocused on the dull grey of the bed in your shadow, to maintain that perfect motionlessness for as long as possible. If You are very, very good, sometimes Deng will bring You something from the outside. There are a very few objects, items placed carefully in a special cabinet that You do not touch often, lest you break their shine. A metal disc with a face on one side, and the number “10” on the other. A shell left by some sea animal, which You can put to your ear. A dried flower. A little glass sculpture in the shape of a turtle. Most often, it is a story that she tells You: wonderful, terrible stories, of how vast the world outside is, how strange, how dangerous. They fill You with both fear and comfort. Fear of a world filled with men who hate You, of seas that can drown You and fires that strip the land bare and floods that sweep even the earth away, and tangled greenery so thick that it chokes entire cities which are filled with so many people. You cannot imagine that many people. That is your comfort. It is just You and Deng. Eyes wide, wrapped up in your white blanket, listening to Deng’s stories as You sit beside her. Sometimes, your breath caught up in your throat, You dare to shuffle closer, until the only thing that separates your skins is the sheet. At this, Deng looks at you, and smiles. You love Deng. And Deng loves You. |}